Lawrence admitted beating to death his 21-month-old daughter Maddox outside Syracuse in February. Authorities say he burned the girl’s body in a fire pit, then tied the remains to a cinder block that he dumped in Onondaga Creek in Syracuse.

Onondaga County District Attorney Bill Fitzpatrick told CBS affiliate WRGB the young girl had battled and beaten cancer in her short life, describing her as a fighter. Fitzpatrick said Lawrence alluded to jealousy over the attention his daughter was getting as a possible motive in the murder.

Prosecutors say the baby’s family agreed to the plea deal. The family cried in court as Lawrence entered the plea.